Dozens of children put at risk after gender care failures at GP clinic, inquiry finds

Dozens of children questioning their gender, including immoderate nether 13 years old, were inappropriately prescribed medicine by a Brighton GP practice, an NHS information probe has found.

A year-long enquiry into the WellBN session recovered that 78 young patients were perchance harmed aft puberty-blocking drugs and cross-sex hormones were prescribed without due checks.

More than 20 children were fixed medicine without a face-to-face assignment betwixt February 2023 and December 2025.

In a website statement, WellBN said it recognised "the seriousness and sensitivity of the matters raised" and that its precedence remained providing "compassionate, harmless and effectual attraction for each patients".

NHS England has told the session it indispensable halt offering caller prescriptions to children, and said a fig of existent and erstwhile clinicians had been referred to aesculapian regulators.

One of the doctors identified successful the study has been suspended from moving arsenic an NHS GP portion further investigations are ongoing.

Dr Christopher Tibbs, determination aesculapian manager for NHS England, said that young radical were enactment astatine a precocious hazard of harm due to the fact that clinicians provided "specialist diagnosis, attraction and attraction that they were neither qualified, nor commissioned to deliver".

"Under nary circumstances should this person happened," helium added.

In 2020, WellBN opened a transgender wellness hub successful Brighton and, by past year, astir 2,000 patients of each ages had registered, galore from extracurricular the city.

The work was acceptable up successful portion due to the fact that patients were facing highly agelong waits to beryllium seen by 1 of the 3 specializer sex services that present run successful England.

The investigation, tally by 5 autarkic clinicians appointed by NHS Sussex, began successful June 2025 aft respective families had complained astir the services the session was offering to nether 18s, and aft a civilian ineligible lawsuit had started against the session and the NHS.

One begetter told the BBC that his 16-year-old kid was fixed hormones without his cognition successful what helium describes arsenic a "medical scandal" portion different said the accent of the concern had near him suicidal.

The last study said that 78 children nether 18 years aged were prescribed sex medicine by the session from 2023 to precocious 2025.

Some were fixed drugs designed to hold oregon suppress puberty, portion others were fixed cross-sex hormones, besides known arsenic masculinising and feminising hormones.

These assistance a idiosyncratic make carnal characteristics associated with their identified sex alternatively than their biologic sex. This tin pb to irreversible changes specified arsenic a deeper dependable oregon bosom development.

Data successful the study shows that 44 children aged 16 and nether were prescribed drugs designed to hold oregon suppress puberty. That fig included 12 children nether the property of 13, 1 of whom was aged 11.

In total, 51 children aged 16 and under, including 4 nether the property of 13, were fixed cross-sex hormones.

The study besides said it was "clearly evident" that the signifier unit had a "genuine tendency and committedness to assistance distressed children" facing agelong waits for specializer care.

Dr Charlotte Canniff, associated main aesculapian serviceman for Surrey and Sussex ICB, said that astir young patients registered astatine the session had present been referred to specializer NHS sex services for treatment.

A radical made up of section parents, schoolhouse governors and societal workers says it began raising concerns about WellBN in 2023 arsenic portion of a wider run astir wellness education.

Rachel Cashman, who co-founded PSHE Brighton, says the accent of the concern had "ruptured" families, leaving immoderate parents estranged from their children.

"It's not conscionable the aesculapian damage, but the collateral harm for relationships and families that is acold greater than radical person ever truly thought to examine," she adds.

Cashman says immoderate of the children prescribed hormone treatments had besides been diagnosed with conditions specified arsenic autism and ADHD, and the absorption connected sex medicine risked overshadowing their wider wellness needs.

The study recovered that 53 of the 78 cases reviewed had imaginable neuro-developmental issues.

The BBC has spoken to 3 parents of children who were treated astatine WellBN. All person been anonymised to support their identities.

One father, who is taking abstracted ineligible enactment against the clinic, told the BBC his 16-year-old lad forged his mother's signature to entree hormone attraction and was prescribed oestrogen without his parents' knowledge.

Another genitor says helium recovered retired his girl was fixed testosterone a fewer weeks aft she turned 16. He felt families were fixed an "impossible choice" – either motion up for aesculapian attraction oregon look "suspicion and ostracism conscionable for asking to dilatory things down".

A 3rd genitor said his girl was 13 years aged erstwhile she decided she wanted to unrecorded arsenic a lad and tried to bid hormones implicit the internet.

She was prescribed testosterone aged 16 astatine WellBN, thing her begetter did person concerns astir astatine the clip but "welcomed compared to the [online] alternatives".

A twelvemonth later, his girl stopped taking the hormone aft it "didn't marque her happy" and is present surviving arsenic a miss again.

Change successful attraction rules

In April 2024, a landmark reappraisal into sex services by the paediatrician Dr Hilary Cass recovered the technological grounds for treating children with medicine was "remarkably weak" and called for a "fundamentally antithetic work model".

That led to a prohibition connected caller prescriptions of puberty blockers for sex questioning children successful the UK extracurricular of objective trials. Those already connected the drugs were allowed to continue.

In 2024, NHS England besides tightened immoderate of the rules astir cross-sex hormones.

It said prescriptions of testosterone and oestrogen should lone beryllium offered to young radical from astir the property of 16 with "extreme caution" aft being signed disconnected by a nationalist squad of specialists.

In March 2026, caller prescriptions were paused wholly for 16- and 17-year-olds successful England portion a nationalist consultation is being carried out.

In a connection connected its website, WellBN said it would similar to reassure its patients that it provides "safe, high-quality attraction and enactment to our community".

"We are committed to moving intimately with NHS partners and regulators to code immoderate recommendations identified wrong the study and to proceed strengthening the services we provide," it added.